Charles Brandon
' Charles Brandon '''was the best friend and loyal ally of King Henry VIII. Apart from Henry himself, Charles is the only character to appear in every episode in the series. He disobeyed Henry once by marrying his sister Princess Margaret Tudor, but learned from this mistake and always did the King's bidding no matter what was asked of him- even if his own orders horrified him. Charles was initially a rather immature and sexually deviant man, but he became more mature and just-natured as he grew accustomed to the power Henry bestowed on him; despite always considering Henry a friend, he becomes increasingly disillusioned and upset with the bloody events of Henry's reign. He also played an important role in the downfall several key figures of Henry's court, such as Cardinal Wolsey, Sir Thomas Cromwell and Queen Anne Boleyn and her family. Charles Brandon was sometimes referred to by his last name of Brandon, but both the King and Margaret Tudor called him by the name of Charles. He is portrayed by Henry Cavill from seasons 1-4. Season One Charles Brandon, the 1st Duke of Suffolk, is King Henry's best friend, having fought alongside him in battle and grown up together; he is not of noble blood, but Henry bestows him with his dukedom before he is to escort Princess Margaret to Portugal. He and Princess Margaret Tudor attack each other but are clearly attracted to one another. Charles is caught with Lord Buckingham's daughter, and he implies that Buckingham's daughter isn't a virigin. He leaves the room. Margaret kills her new husband, the King of Portugal, so she can be with Charles. They marry after he proposes. However, when Margaret reveals this to the King, he is furious and banishes them both from court. Staying elsewhere by themselves, Margaret drunkenly yells at Charles, saying if it weren't for him she'd still be the Queen of Portugal, asking, "And now what am I?" Charles responds by saying she is drunk and foolish, before they begin having sex. Charles is only seen having two affairs but the Queen of France implies he has had more. She refuses to sleep with him after he hits on her. Margaret dies of consumption (tuberculosis) and Charles doesn't seem upset, but the King is furious with him for not even telling him that Margaret was sick. However, we see later on in this episode, episode 9, we see Charles does in fact care while he sniffs and tears up by Margaret's coffin. He then bursts into tears, saying, "I'm sorry. Forgive me." He feels extreme guilt for having been engaging in sex with another woman while Margaret was dying. In the final part of the series, despite his deep dislike of the Boleyn family, Charles allies with Thomas Boleyn Lord of Rochford, Thomas Cromwell and the Duke of Norfolk against the man he detests even more- Cardinal Wolsey. This is partly because the Boleyn family, who are gaining influence, promise to restore Charles to the King's favor and allow him to return to Court. They successfully strip Wolsey of his power, replacing him under King Henry as the next greatest power in England. However, Charles soon abandons this alliance, distasteful of Lord Boleyn's devious actions and his daughter Anne's relationship with Henry- as well as still grieving for his deceased wife. Season Two Charles appears again in the second season, a main character. He has taken a new wife, and promises to be true to her, telling her, "To you, I will always be true." He is forced to bring a lot of bad news to Catherine, saying, "Forgive me," despite it not being his fault at all. Another woman arrives at court and Charles kisses her, but feels guilt, as he is married. Henry asks Charles if women have ever lied to him about their virginity. When Charles responds inappropriately and says that women always lie about that, an awkward silence ensues and he aplogizes. Henry shrugs it off, saying he asked for the truth and that's what Charles told him. Charles runs afoul of Henry's temper again in episode 3.03; firstly, he shows up late for Henry's wedding to Anne Boleyn, and secondly he fails to catch an assasin at her coronation, an event where he is supposed to be in charge of the guardsmen. Charles obviously hates Anne as well as her father and frequently calls her a whore, but never to their faces. Anne is perfectly aware of his hostility, however, and responds by convincing Henry to banish Charles from court; when Henry later calls him back as his marriage with Anne deteriorates, Charles is happy to disparrage her. However, when Queen Anne is sentenced to death, he feels bad for her, and despite not liking her, he doesn't believe she deserves to die. He is enraged when he discovers the degree of her father's indifference so long as he survives; he manhandles Thomas Boleyn, asking if acquiring ''temporary power was worth George and Anne's deaths, as well as his own permanent disgrace. As the Boleyn's position of prestige is destroyed, Charles emerges from the bloody power struggle unharmed and still in the King's favor- although he is no happier with the result, for the true winner is the unscrupulous Thomas Cromwell. Charles' son plays with a sword in episode 2.10, knocking over several items and furniture in Charles' and his wife's house, and Charles plays dead to scare his son. He suddenly jumps up, saying "Rah!" He tells his son that a sword is not a toy, and when questioned on whether he has ever killed someone, he says he has and he liked it. He brings his son to Queen Anne's execution and hears her final words; eventually, even he kneels and joins the crowd in praying for his former enemy, moved by her dignity and bravery. Season Three Charles has less of a prominent role in the third season, but it can be inferred that he too was fond of Henry's third wife Jane Seymour, as all members of the court were. He does lead the Royal Army in an attempt the Northern Rebellion in early episodes, but then negotiates with them on Henry's behalf. However, although he sympathizes with them and shares their hope of displacing Thomas Cromwell, he is really just stalling with a truce until the Royal Army is strong enough to crack down on them. Charles shows deep remorse over the subsequent civilian-killings he is ordered to commit in reprisal for the rebellion. Although Charles never does anything directly to anger the King, Henry alternates between rage and praise for him, depending on events. In the final season episode, he and the court unite against Cromwell and successfully sentence him to death for treason, but as with Anne Boleyn, Charles gets no satisfaction from his death; he only believed Cromwell deserved to lose his powers. Season Four Charles and Henry are growing old, but are still good friends. Charles' marriage is only happy in its' appearance, but he appears to have accepted the circumstances; he and his wife are sepparated. He is also good friends with Lady Anne of Cleves, whom he taught to play cards. During Henry's siege of the fortified port of Boulogne, Charles acts as commander-in-chief of artilley, directing the fire of the English cannons. He captures a French minor noblewoman, Brigitte (who was dressed as a man so that she could fight) and eventually falls in love with her and brings her back to England as his mistress. In Episode 4.09, Charles, like Henry, is shown to have aged considerably in a short time; he has a somewhat hostile relationship with his wife, but still loves Brigitte and his son Henry, who is perfectly aware of their relationship. Charles is once again disillusioned by Henry's militarism, witnessing the long and ruinous siege of Boulogne- which, although successful, is costly to the point that the English cannot continue on to Paris, and ultimately the port is ransomed back to the French. In the last episode, Lord Hartford (brother of the deceased Jane Seymour and thus uncle to Prince Edward) attempts to learn if Charles will support or fight against him in the matter of Edward's succession, since Charles is known to have held Henry's favor for such a long time; Charles declines to do either, being weary of life and wishing England were more united as it once was, since he does not practice either Catholicism or Protestantism . During the episode, Charles comes to visit Henry despite suffering from illness; Charles and Henry reminisce about the golden days of their youth, and depart. It is their last encounter; Charles dies of his illness soon after while Henry mourns, as his closest friend and most loyal ally is now gone, as Henry's own health begins to fade. Henry personally pays for Charles' funeral and burial at St. George's Chapel at Windsor. Backstory Charles Brandon was born in 1484 and died in 1545, a surprisingly long life span for someone of those times. His father was Henry VII's standard bearer William Brandon. Charles Brandon's mother died when he was about ten and the orphaned young boy was sent to the Royal Court probably by his uncle. Since Brandon wasn't heir to an important title or great wealth, his case depended more on sentiment. He had a claim on Henry Tudor's affections since his father had died in the King's father's service. Charles was two years older than Henry VII's first son, Prince Arthur, so it is probable that they were playmates. Despite being seven years older than Henry VIII, Charles shared his most prominent characteristics- natural athleticism, robust physical health and a devotion to all sports (wrestling, hunting, tilting and jousting, etc). During these adolescent years, the two boys laid the foundation for a life-long friendship. Brandon might have been the only person in England who succesfully retained Henry VIII's affection for over 40 turbulent years. Gentility: The son of Sir William Brandon and Elizabeth Bruyn, who was the daughter and heiress of Sir Henry Bruyn of South Ockendon in Essex. Position: A close and trusted friend of Henry VIII. Quotes *"She and I, we're married. You have to tell the King." *"I can't tell whether you're really brave or if you're just a f*cking fool."- Margaret. "Neither can I"- Charles. *"And tell me, will you like it when an old man makes love to you?" *"You are drunk and you are foolish!" *"And would you like to pay him back?"- Charles to the Queen of France. "Of course. I am a woman."- The Queen of France. "Then go to bed with me."- Charles. *"Margaret is dead. She died of consumption." *"If all of my courtiers were beautiful women, I would be working for my kingdom day and night." *"To you, I will always be true." *"When do they not lie?" *"That woman is a whore." *"When she consents to make love to me again, strike a medal to commemorate it."- to Henry, referring to his estranged wife. *Henry VIII (on Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk after his death) "I will tell you this, my Lord Hartford: as long as Charles Brandon served me, he never betrayed a friend, nor ever took unfair advantage of an enemy... which is more than I can say for anyone else at my court. I never thought he would die." Category:Characters